Lost in the Storm's Shadow
by Burning-Stars98
Summary: After an accident, Jetstorm finds himself in a world where he can see his allies but cannot touch them, and no one else seems to know he's still online. Meanwhile the others search for him, their hopes held by the twins' bond. But the longer it takes, the more that hope fades, and the more it feels like history is repeating itself... (TFA Universe with Aligned elements)
1. Chapter 1

The entire city of Detroit was coated in white; an unexpected snowfall brought in from the lake and dumped onto the streets, rooftops and awnings.  
Most of the civilians were able to find shelter before the worst hit, but there always were those who thought they could make it, those that told themselves '_It's not that bad out there_,' the ones who were then stranded on the side of the road or their cars plowed into drifts that seemed to just appear out of nowhere.

Fortunately, the Autobots were able to get out of the plant to lend aid, though it wasn't exactly what they'd wanted to spend _all night_ doing.

"Do we_ look_ like Rescue Bots…!?" Bumblebee mumbled under his breath as he yanked a small sedan loose from a drift. "There are so many other things we could be doing right now if people just stayed out of this stuff."  
He jumped as a snowball smashed into his back, and whipped around to look at Bulkhead.

"What? I didn't do anything." Bulkhead lied, avoiding his friend's gaze and hands behind his back.

"Keep focused, Team." Optimus looked off in the distance, to where the sky was beginning to lighten once more, dawn stretching to pull itself out from under the covers of night. "…We're almost finished."

Things had been mostly quiet these days, which was just fine for Optimus. There were minimal criminals to deal with, no Decepticons threatening mankind, and finally, no looming presence of the Decepticon Leader Megatron.  
Optimus still bore a few scars from that final confrontation, but he'd gained something more important to him: He'd gotten out from under the events that had transpired all those stellar cycles ago; he wasn't remembered as the Academy washout that 'barely' made it to Prime, he was remembered as the bot that finally ended Megatron's tyranny.

It wasn't the fame that he'd wanted from it, but rather the freedom, the burden of that fated trip off of his shoulders and letting him become more than just a maintenance bot.

The only bot who still hung onto that day was Sentinel. He'd never let Optimus forget that day. Elita One was gone, only Black Arachnia. After the events on Dinobot Island, Optimus had heard news that a large spider had been spotted somewhere in Africa. The two may never see each other again, she may not even want to see him again, but it at least gave Optimus comfort that she was still functional; perhaps one day, she would learn to forgive them and come back to their side, but that was to be on her terms, not his.

"And once again…" Bumblebee looked around the street, "…Prowl has disappeared."

"Prowl, you sleeping in one of the drifts again!?" Bulkhead hollered.

They searched the area for a few seconds, before a black head peeked out of one of the drifts, shaking snow from his head. "There he is."

Prowl pulled himself loose of the drift, walking on all fours down from the top before taking a seat. "My apologies for dozing off again… It's just-"

"Instinct, we know." Optimus interrupted.

The bots had all nearly had spark attacks when Prowl suddenly showed up at the plant as a cat one night. He'd been reformatted by the Allspark, reborn into a being that resembled the organic life he'd loved so much, while still being fully mechanical: A black panther, still as quiet and stealthy as he'd been before, if not even more so.

Sentinel had almost shot the ninja the first time he saw him, thinking he was one of Black Arachnia's techno-organic experiments, and even after explaining the situation, the Elite Guard still kept his distance.

But the transformation had brought with it some cat-like instincts, like hissing when startled and being awake all night with long naps during the day. While this meant he'd been plenty of help during the night, his energy was now spent and he was falling into one of his slumps.

Optimus nudged the cat-bot back up to his feet before his comm. link beeped. "Professor Sumdac?"

**…Sentinel Prime is here at the Spacebridge. **Professor Sumdac whispered quickly, **He does not want to talk to me.**

Optimus groaned, "Tell him to meet us at the plant and we'll be there shortly…" He muttered, "Come on Team, Sentinel's given us an unexpected visit."

"Joy…" Bumblebee muttered as they all met up and then transformed into vehicle mode.

"Autobots, roll out."

* * *

Jetfire was bored, not that he'd outwardly admit it in front of Sentinel Prime. He'd made that mistake once before, and was given the job of scrubbing every inch of the Steelhaven's exterior as 'something to do.'

He could feel that his twin was the same, but there was also a hint of humor sifting through their bond, as if Jetstorm was keeping himself occupied by thinking of something funny.

Sentinel Prime and Jazz stood a little ways ahead of them, the Elite Guard standing a good ways from the piles of white that had covered the entire city. Jazz however, was investigating the substance, running it through his hands and then watching it melt against his plating.

"Tiny, frozen crystals of liquid… Crazy…!" He whispered.

Jetstorm inched slowly closer to a pile of the white, taking a feel for himself. "…I was seeing small organics throwing it at each other."

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard." Sentinel muttered, "And you're supposed to be at attention!"

Jetstorm returned to his position beside his brother, and Jetfire felt a pulse of irritation come through the bond. The orange jettwin gave his brother a smile, and Jetstorm finally smiled back.

For as long as the two had been under Sentinel Prime's command, they'd idolized him, fawning over his stories of battle and valor. But the longer they were with the Elite Guard, the more they began to question just how much of those stories were complete fantasy or partial fabrication. These days, Optimus seemed to be a better role model to idolize than Sentinel.

"It's about time!" Sentinel announced as Optimus and his team came rolling up from elsewhere in the city. "When I come for a surprise inspection of your base, I expect you to be present!"

"We were busy protecting civilians, Sentinel." Optimus transformed into bot mode, poking a finger to Sentinel's chestplate. "Something you could be doing a better job at."

"Are you scolding me, Optimus!? Or have you forgotten that I outrank you!?"

"How could I forget? You never stop bringing it up. You should have come and helped, Sentinel." Optimus offered with a false smile, "We could've used your plow to help clear the streets."

"His chin would've worked too…" Jetstorm mumbled, and Jetfire slapped a hand over his mouth to keep from bursting into laughter.

The bots all then turned as Sari came flying in from down the street. "Morning Guys!" She greeted with a smile, and then a frown and narrowed eyes as she looked at the visiting Prime. "…Sentinel."

Sentinel groaned, "I know you're all for co-op engagements with the natives Optimus, but does the Techno-Organic have to be here _too_…!?"

Optimus rolled his optics as Sari gave a pout, but lifted a hand to stop her from giving a retort. "Sari is as much a part of our team as any of the rest of us." He informed, "So yes, she will be here too."

"I am seeing no problems with the tiny half-bot femme being here…" Jetstorm whispered to his twin, "…She _does_ keep our visits less boring."

"Agreed, Brother…" Jetfire replied, both returning to standing at attention when Sentinel looked their way. "…The organic things of this planet are not_ all_ bad, right?"

"Right…"

"Let's just get your surprise inspection over with," Optimus faked a smile, "So you can then go_ right_ back to the fully-mechanical streets of Cybertron."

"Yes. Let us." Sentinel turned to the jettwins, "Jetfire, Jetstorm, stand on guard outside of the base in case we are attacked."

"Sir yes sir!" The twins announced, and then watched their superior officer follow Optimus and his team into the plant. As soon as the door was closed however, the orange jettwin broke formation and bent down, scooping a handful of snow into his hands.

"What are you doing, Brother?" Jetstorm inquired, yelping as his brother then tossed the handful at him, the projectile exploding against his armor with a soft thump. "Hey!"

"Sentinel Prime did not say we could not be having fun while we guard, did he?" Jetfire teased, and after a moment Jetstorm's lips curled into a grin.

"Yes… And the likeliness of any attacking is small…You are going to be beaten down with the cold, frozen whiteness!" He announced as he grabbed some snow as well. "No mercy!"

* * *

By the time Sentinel came anywhere near the outside, the twins were both worn out from their snowball fight and their systems were suggesting they seek some warmer surroundings.

They returned to their guard stations as the doors opened again, and their team and the Earth-Assigned team exited back out into what Optimus had referred to as snow. Both primes were muttering about something under their breath, but Optimus had a slight smile on his faceplate where Sentinel's was a scowl.

"Everything is being in order?" Jetfire inquired, and earned a nod from Jazz.

"We're leaving." Sentinel ordered, and then transformed into vehicle mode. Jazz followed, and then the twins followed suit, taking off ahead of the ground-bound members of their race to return to Sumdac Tower and it's Spacebridge.

"Are you thinking that something is troubling, Brother?" Jetstorm inquired.

"What are you meaning, Brother?"

"I do not know… I am just feeling like something is going to be happening…And not a good something."

The pair landed on the rooftop of Sumdac Tower, transforming into bot mode. "Are you feeling more detail about this…'_Bad_ _Something_?'"

Jetstorm shook his head, "It is like a darkness, growing slowly and reaching at me."

Jetfire placed an arm around his brother's shoulders, "I will not be letting it take you, Brother."

"Neither will I be letting it hurt _you_…But what _is_ it? I am not knowing…!"

It took the other bots several minutes to reach the rooftop via the elevator, which left the two bots alone and pulsing reassurance between each other.  
Jetfire did not like how much distress this bad feeling his brother felt was affecting him; his brother had always been the one to take on the protective role, even back before they were the test subjects of Project: Safeguard. Now, it seemed that Jetfire had the chance to be the reassuring one.

"You couldn't have waited for us…?" Bumblebee muttered as they marched out of the elevator.

"But we did wait on you." Jetfire responded, "We are still here, are not we?"

"Why are we even being here anyways?" Jetstorm mumbled, "We were not even needing to help with anything."

"Well as always, it's been a pleasure…" Prowl purred as he took a seat beside Bulkhead, "…Such a shame you had to leave so early."

"Keep your attitude to yourself, Organic-Moder." Sentinel hissed at the cat-bot, only to have Sari fly up into his face.

"You be nice! He saved the galaxy, and that includes your sorry a-"

"That's enough bickering, Sari…" Optimus interrupted, gently tugging Sari back from out of his rival's faceplate. "…We'll be seeing each other again soon, I'm sure."

Sentinel's optics narrowed, "I've got my eye on you, Optimus…On all of you."

Professor Sumdac looked relieved when the Spacebridge portal was activated and the orb of energy began to expand; finally the annoying Prime was leaving them alone for a little while.

However, that relief was quickly replaced by concern as the controls began to crackle with electricity and alarms began blaring from it.

"What's going on?" Bumblebee asked, looking to the human at the controls.

"The controls are malfunctioning! I cannot control the Spacebridge's energy output!"

The orb was continuing to grow, but its surface was shifting color, going from swirling blue and green to streaks of purple pulsing through it and bursting off like solar flares.

"In other words…" Jazz reported, "GET DOWN!"

The Spacebridge projection then exploded, shooting energy out in all directions and the bots were thrown off of their feet and across the rooftop. A deafening BOOM shook the air and from the street below, a ring of purple and white light shot out across the sky before dissipating.

The bots remained still for a few moments, giving pained moans and groans as they eventually encouraged their bodies to move again. Pieces of the Spacebridge's arch were littered across the rooftop like confetti, some stabbed into the concrete just inches from one of the disoriented cybertronians' armor.

Optimus lay on his back, staring up at the smoky sky for just a moment before rolling over onto his hands and knees with the loud creaking of metal. "I'll be feeling _that_ later…! E-Everyone alright…?"

There was a general murmuring of confirmation from the bots, and Optimus saw Sari's energy shield flickering as she held it up to defend her father from the debris. Her hands were trembling, and the shield finally flickered out of existence and the techno-organic collapsed into her father's arms.

"Sari!" Professor took his daughter's head into his hands, worry crossing his face until she lifted a hand to pat his shoulder.

"I'm fine…!" Sari panted, giving a weak smile. "Just need to…rest for a second."

Optimus gave a sigh of relief, the organic and semi-organic members of the team were unharmed; however, a sudden cry brought his attention back to the others.

"Brother!?" Jetfire asked, looking around the space. "Brother, where _are _you? Brother!"

The other bots all looked around as well, but the blue jettwin was nowhere to be seen. "Jetstorm!?" Optimus called.

"…You don't think he got-" Bumblebee was cut off by Prowl putting a hand over his mouth.

"Don't stress Jetfire out _further_…" The cyber-ninja hissed, and then turned back to the junior officer. "I'm sure he's alright, Jetfire. We'll keep looking…"

Jetfire's optics were wide with fear as he searched the area for his sibling, "Brother, where are you!?" He cried.

Sentinel tapped his comm link. "Jetstorm, report!" There was nothing but static. "Jetstorm, report! This is no time to be playing around!"

"Maybe he was transwarped somewhere." Bulkhead suggested, giving a look at what was left of the Spacebridge.

"But none of the _rest_ of us were!" Bumblebee argued, "Why would it only be just _him_?"

Jetfire paused and looked around, placing his hands over his chest plate and spark. "Brother…I am feeling him…But I don't see him, and it is faint."

"Can you_ track_ him, Fire?" Jazz asked.

Fire looked thoughtful, but shook his head. "No…I cannot track where he is…He is _hurting_…"

"But we have no idea where he is. Brilliant." Sentinel growled, "One of my soldiers is missing and we have no idea on how to find him!"

"We'll find him, Sentinel." Optimus insisted, "First, we need to figure out what caused him to disappear in the _first place_." The Prime got to his feet, "Ratchet, help Bulkhead evaluate the damage to the Spacebridge controls. Everyone else, search this base from top to bottom for any sign of Jetstorm."

Jetfire was up and moving _long_ before Sentinel got into his usual argument with Optimus over who was in charge and should be giving orders. He limped across the rooftop, searching anywhere that his brother might be behind or under, all the while using his spark to feel if he was getting closer.

"Brother… Brother, please be okay…"


	2. Chapter 2

Jetstorm grimaced as he came back out of stasis. Alarms blared in his processor about the damage he'd sustained, but he was unable to process them with them all coming at once. His helm hurt so badly that he reached a shaky hand up to make sure it hadn't been split apart from the impact.

He struggled to recall what had transpired, the pieces slowly coming back like a setting through the mist.

_First_, he and his brother had been standing on top of Sumdac Tower, awaiting the Spacebridge to fully expand so they could return to Cybertronian space.

_Second_, the spacebridge had taken on an unusual color, and began to expand further than it should have.

_Third_, Jetstorm had shoved his brother out of the way of one burst of discharged energy, which had left him in the closest proximity to the full blast when the orb of unstable energy had finally erupted.

_Fourth_, Jetstorm had felt himself be thrown across the rooftop and then even off of it by the blast, and he'd been plummeting off of the tower when his sensors had shut down and left him in a forced stasis.

His entire chassis throbbed as he rolled over, and as his optics finally came back online, he found his visor was cracked, and his visuals flickered in and out of being color and black and white, on top of everything being blurry shapes moving about. "Ugh… Brother…?" He called with a raspy voice, feeling an increasing fear coming through their bond. "Brother!?"

There was no response, and Jetstorm forced himself up onto his hands and knees. His vision eventually cleared, but remained colorless and distorted from the long crack in his visor. He was on ground-level, and Sumdac Tower was a fair distance from his position; much further than he'd figured he could have tumbled. He hoped no vicious organic creature had dragged him this far, and he brought a hand to his helm with a grimace.

"Ugh…J-Jetstorm to Sentinel Prime, do you- _Augh_!"  
He yelped as a loud screeching sound came out of his comm link. "Ugh…Communicator must be broken too. Must… find others…"

He forced himself up onto his feet, his chassis creaking as he stumbled a few steps before catching himself against the wall. "I is coming, Brother…Be holding on…"

Flight mode was not possible with his injuries; his wings bent inward and drooped limply from his shoulders, as it hurt too much to even try to lift them. His left foot was oozing energon, leaving footprints down the sidewalk as he limped onward; he needed repairs, but he had to find the Autobots' medic first.

With that in mind, he limped on foot down the street.

* * *

An hour had passed since the bots had started their search, and yet there was no sign of Jetstorm anywhere. Once they had confirmed that he was not on the rooftop, they then began searching the platforms and ground below, but there was no trace of him there either; not even a crack where he might have landed and then gotten up and moved on.

Jetfire was becoming more frustrated by the minute, but after being scolded by Sentinel for not keeping his cool, the orange jet had not spoken another word. He searched the streets for any sign of his brother, hovering low and investigating anything blue that caught his optic, but to no avail.

Finally, they all returned to the Plant, if only to warm up for a few minutes before going back out.

Prowl stood off to the side, pacing back and forth while rubbing his chin. "Hmm…So we have a missing autobot, and no clues to suggest where he went or what happened…"

"I still say it might've been a transwarp." Bulkhead argued, "Bumblebee did that_ too_."

"But I was holding onto a transwarp drive thingy without a director or whatever!" Bumblebee reminded, "I mean yeah, Jetstorm was the closest to the blast, but…"

"You still pickin' him up, 'Fire?" Jazz asked, and Jetfire nodded from his seat on the couch. His optics were closed, and his shoulders relaxed as he tried to focus on his brother's signal, on the pull of their bond.

The pull was getting slowly stronger, but it still felt off, like their bond was being partially inhibited by something other than distance. "…I am not thinking he has left planet Earth."

"Good." Optimus encouraged, "That narrows down the area we need to search."

"Yeah, narrowed down to one-hundred and six point nine _million_ square miles." Prowl reminded, "That is a _lot _of ground and ocean to cover."

"We have to try. Jetfire said that Jetstorm is hurt, so we have to find him and make sure he's okay."

The prime looked back at the young bot as he sat silently, staring at his hands. He then lowered his voice to a whisper as he turned to their medic, "Ratchet…How much do we actually know about the bond between twins?"

"Not enough." Ratchet admitted with a sigh, "Twins are so rare on Cybertron, and our relations with the cybertronian colony Devisiun isn't the best, thanks to the incident with the registration act Sentinel was in charge of."

Optimus grunted quietly in understanding, "Once again, one of our biggest obstacles is because of his actions… Joy." He was quiet for a moment, and then rubbed his chin. "…Those pulses of emotion have to be traceable somehow…"

"Are you suggesting we conduct _experiments_ on Jetfire, in his distressed state?"

"If we can figure out what kind of reactions occur in his processor when he sends or receives one of those signals, we may be able to create some sort of scanner that'll enable us to search more effectively by copying what Jetfire is doing."

The old medic grumbled, looking at several cuts in Jetfire's armor from the shrapnel. "The kid needs some medical attention anyway… Come on, Kid."

Ratchet walked over and gently tugged Jetfire to his feet, "Let's get you checked out while we're all here."

"Ratchet sir, I am…" Jetfire's voice trailed off as he remembered who he was trying to argue with; there was no arguing with almost any medic, but especially not Ratchet. "…Yes Sir."

"Good bot."

Optimus watched the medic and junior guard leave the room, and then turned to Sentinel. "You going back out already?"

"In that…Stuff? No slagging way." Sentinel informed, "At least not until the roads are cleared of it."

Optimus nodded; that gave them a little bit longer to work on his theory…and hopefully more time for Jetstorm to make his way back to the base.

* * *

Jetstorm had decided against trying to head back up Sumdac Tower, he had a feeling the other bots would not have remained there except perhaps Bulkhead to help repair any damage to the Spacebridge.

The other possible location was back at Team Prime's base of operations at the plant, and the fresh tracks in the snow supported his suspicions. His own energon-stained footprints soon joined them as he limped down the empty roads, pushing the urge to rest into the back of his processor. He could rest when he'd gotten back to the others.

Despite being surrounded by snow and ice however, the air seemed warmer than it had been. And there was hardly a breeze blowing through the streets, leaving behind an eerie quiet that was kept from utter silence by the wounded bot's footsteps, panting gasps and a distant blaring that sounded like an automobile's alarm going off somewhere else in the city.

The odd warmth meant that freezing wasn't amongst the various warnings blaring through his head, letting him continue walking on. His feet shuffled on the asphalt, pulses of worry entering his helm from his twin.

He tried to send back his own pulses, something to tell his brother that he was still receiving him and was on his way towards him, but every pulse sucked more energy out of his limbs, and he'd nearly fallen more than once. He trudged on, holding his arms around his torso, his helm ducked down. His visor's damage nearly made him blind; he was surprised he hadn't run into anything yet.

The plant was only a few blocks away when he heard a familiar hum, and he looked up to see his brother flying over the buildings. "B-Brother!" He rasped, lifting a hand and trying to get his brother's attention, but the orange jet continued on without even slowing.

He tested his comm. link again, grimacing as it still whined loudly and no proper signal was able to reach through. He'd have to just keep moving.

The plant became within view, and Jetstorm took a moment to rest. He plopped down outside the door, where just a short time ago the two had been playing and enjoying not doing anything important. Their footsteps circled the lot in front, some of the splats left from dodged snowballs still present on the poles and nearby structures.

He closed his optics for a moment, but didn't dare let himself sleep just yet; he could once he was patched up. But it seemed to occur anyway, as when he opened his optics next, he could see Earth's star, Sol, had moved further across the sky than he'd expected to have.

His joints groaned as he sat up again, limping through the door and finding the front space empty. "…Sentinel Prime Sir? Jazz?... Anyone?" He called, but there was no answer. He limped a little further into the plant, hearing their voices coming from down the hallway. He followed them, finding them all standing in the medical bay and overlooking the table, where Jetfire was lying. "Brother!?"

Jetfire was lying on his back, a long cord protruding from his helm and leading to a large scanner of some sort. His hands were folded over his chest, his optics shifting around.

"So what are you plannin' to have happen with this jalopy?" Jazz inquired, looking to Optimus with furrowed eyebrows.

"Hopefully we can search the city just like Jetfire can if we know what kind of impulses he's picking up." Optimus replied, looking to Jetfire. "What're you feeling right now, Jetfire?"

Jetfire shrugged, "…He feels close, but…" He sat up a little, looking around the room. "…I do not see him."

Jetstorm limped forward, "You are speaking of me?" He guessed, but nobody answered him, or even acknowledged his presence. "…Hello? You are hearing me, yes?" Still no response.

"Hey Boss Bot!"

Jetstorm turned to see Bumblebee running full-speed into the room, and he prepared for an impact…But it never came, because Bumblebee walked right through him. Jetstorm stumbled back, gasping as Sentinel then did the same, and he then tried to place a hand on Sentinel's shoulder, only for his hand to pass right through.

"I…I am not touching…!" He whimpered, "…Am I…Am I not _online_!?"  
He could feel his spark beating faster and faster in his chest, but was it all an _illusion_…!?

He hesitated, but then finally opened his chest plate, giving a sigh of relief as he saw his spark, still beating and glowing like it should. He wasn't offline…But then what was going on?

"Brother…!" Jetfire's optics moved around the room, even passing over Jetstorm's position, but he was still searching.

"Lie back down, Kid. I'm not done yet." Ratchet informed.

"I am _here_, Brother!" Jetstorm cried, trying to grab the orange jettwin's hand, but failing. "Please! _Please_…!"

"He is afraid…" Jetfire murmured.

"I have _reason_ to be afraid!" Jetstorm cried, "I cannot be touching anyone! Brother, Cycle-Motor, Jazz, _somebody hear_ me!"

The little bot dropped to his hands and knees as his helm began to spin. His chassis was trembling, and only shook more as hiccupping sobs began to leave his throat. He was trapped, hurt and alone; nobody knew where he was, or even if he was still online, not even himself.

"Somebody…HELP ME!"


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you Stardragon2006 for catching that technical stuff from before. I forgot to check for that before I uploaded it.**

The Autobots were caught off-guard by Jetfire suddenly bursting into sobs. He'd been fine just a moment before, and then he gave a slight whimper, his bottom lip quivering, before dropping to his knees and beginning to cry.

"Enough of that, soldier." Sentinel ordered, but Jetfire didn't let up. "Pull yourself together!"

"I cannot…!" The orange twin gasped, "He is afraid...!"

"He's reacting to how _Jetstorm's_ feeling…!" Prowl informed, bending down to the junior elite guard and rubbing his back as Jetfire expressed his twin's sorrow.

A few minutes passed before Jetfire was finally able to pull his emotions back under his own control, and he wiped tears from his faceplate. "Brother… We will find you…!" He whispered, "…Somewhere."

"You good, 'Fire?" Jazz asked, earning a nod from the younger officer. "Good."

"Now can we please get back to the task at hand?" Sentinel muttered, "We don't have time for over-emotional outbursts."

"Sentinel, come on. Have a spark." Optimus started, but paused as fire flared up from Jetfire's wrists.

"_Over…__Emotional_…!?" Jetfire hissed. He got up to his feet, shoving a flaming finger in his superior officer's face. "You are saying _you_ did not be emotional when you thought Elita-One was offline!? That you were not _worried_ when you did not know for _certain_!?"

You could have heard a pin drop all the way across Detroit with how quiet it suddenly got.

Bumblebee leaned down to Sari's level, his voice barely a whisper. "…I think that's the clearest sentence I've ever heard him say…"

Sentinel didn't seem sure what to do next. His optics were wide, looking at the flames licking off of the twin's palms and dissipating just under his nose. He had expected this kind of disrespect from Optimus or any of his team, but one of his junior officers?

Jetfire just stood there, panting hard before finally extinguishing the flames and walking out of the medical bay. "I am going to find my brother." He informed firmly, and then he hurried out of the plant.

Finally, Sentinel spoke, glaring at Optimus. "You see what kind of poor influence you're being, Optimus!?"

Optimus' optics darkened at the accusation, but only for a moment before Optimus waved a hand in dismissal. "It's not _me_, Sentinel… Jetfire's just finally taken off the rose-colored glasses and can see reality clearly now."

"What in the Allspark are you talking about!? Rose-colored glasses."

"It's an Earth saying." Prowl informed, "It means to see without a blinding belief in something…or _someone_."

"Are you _threatening_ me, Organic-Moder!?" Sentinel growled, glaring at the cat-bot but not getting too close to him. Prowl's tail lashed back and forth a few times, but he said nothing more. "You'd be wise to remember your rank."

"And _you_ would be wise to remember who saved your sorry aft when you made that deal with Lockdown." Optimus retorted, "You only show respect to anyone who outranks you, and you're an exhaust pipe to everyone else."

"Oh, like _you're_ some saint! It's your fault we lost her on Arach 7!"

"Black Arachnia's fate is on many heads, Sentinel. Mine, yours, the High Council's for not letting us go back for her. And that doesn't affect how you treat people not even _involved_ in the incident. Jetfire and Jetstorm both have served under you faithfully despite you always insulting them when they fail or even when they succeed!"

"You don't get to tell me how to treat my officers, Optimus! Just because you took Ultra Magnus' hammer and got a lucky shot on Megatron that does not make you a hero!"

Optimus' eyebrows furrowed as he lowered his tone, "Neither does schmoozing your way up the ranks and then treating everyone else like the ground you walk on."

Sentinel probably would have responded, but Optimus was already walking out of the room. They heard him transform and then drive out of the plant, leaving the others in an awkward silence until eventually they all hurried in their separate ways.

Ratchet sighed, overlooking the readings he'd gotten when Jetfire had been calm enough to let him. "…I just hope the other kid's okay out there…"

* * *

Even Jetstorm had been taken by surprise by his brother's outburst. He'd forced himself to pull himself together, especially once he'd seen how it was affecting Jetfire.

But the amount of rage that had come slamming into him like a wave had startled him; he hadn't felt his brother get that angry since the training exercise where Starscream's coding had injured him and Jetfire had torched the decepticon, nearly burning down the training facility in the process.

That day had been the one where they'd discovered their elemental skills: fire and wind. Jetstorm could put his brother's flames out, but he could also _feed_ them, depending on the situation; it was one of the reasons the two worked together so well, on top of them being literal two halves of a whole.

When Jetfire had stormed out, Jetstorm wasn't sure whether to follow him or not. Logically, it would be wiser to stay at the plant and rest, but with his brother in such a state, he was also concerned that Jetfire might get himself in trouble by not thinking straight.

The blue twin limped to the door, watching his brother walk out into the snow once more, but this time he stayed on foot. Deciding not to investigate the shouting now coming from the medical bay, he made the decision to follow.

Jetfire's heated chassis left melted footprints in the frozen landscape, so keeping track of him on the ground was easy, as long as he didn't take off into the air. Jetstorm took this time to think things over.

"Okie dokie… I am seeing things but not touching them… No wondering I was not running into things. I can hear things too, but nobody else is able to hearing, or seeing, or touching me…" He paused as he saw his brother stumble to the side as everything suggested a strong gust of wind, but he felt nothing. "…It is colder with the wind, but I do not feel it, so it is warmer… Where am I _being_...!?"

He gave an exasperated facepalm, but was suddenly reminded of his helm injury as a jolt of pain shot through it and he grimaced as his vision fizzled out for a moment. "Augh…Slag…!"

"Brother, are you okay?" Jetfire murmured, probably picking up the twinges of pain pulsing through their bond.

"No, I am _not_ okay!" Jetstorm announced, "I am very…very frustrated."

"Hey Jetfire, hold up a cycle!"

Both twins paused, turning to see Optimus rolling up to the orange twin and then transforming into bot mode. "Hey…Sorry about what happened back there in the plant. I-"

"You have no needing to apologize, Optimus Prime Sir." Jetfire assured, "You and your team are being very… understanding. I never noticed how much believing I am in Sentinel Prime until seeing it now."

Optimus sighed, "I know… He was that way even _before_ the accident on Arach 7, but after losing Elita… I think he's just trying to avoid feeling the pain of that sort of thing happening again. And now your brother, one of the officers he's responsible for, has gone missing."

Jetfire nodded, "But we will be finding him… I can feel him. He's still online, I am knowing."

Optimus patted the orange twin's shoulder, and Jetstorm gave a sigh of relief; they weren't giving up hope on him just yet.

But his attention was caught by a soft scraping, and he looked over and saw several bots limping across the road towards them. Many of them had mangled arms and legs that dragged or hung limply at their sides as they moved; their optics were empty of emotion, but were focused on the prime and his brother, whose backs were turned to them.

"B-Brother, watch out!" He shouted despite knowing that they could not hear him. Perhaps his panic would carry over and they would look around for the cause.

But Jetstorm gasped and backed away as the other bots then turned _his_ way, their optics focusing on him while they walked right through his allies.

If these bots couldn't touch the other bots like _he_ couldn't, but _could_ hear _him_...

One of the bots lifted a gnarled finger, "…Him…!" They rasped, and then they reached towards the blue jettwin.

Jetstorm bolted, the pain of his injuries shoved to the back of his mind as he took off down the street on foot.

These bots were trapped in this realm too, probably for far longer than he was, but he wasn't interested in knowing more at the moment. He had to lose them, and he had a feeling that being in such a large city would be to his advantage…

…Unless there were other groups of these half-dead bots wandering around.

He decided not to think about that, instead ducking into a parking garage. He ran up the levels, hearing them pursuing, metal scraping on the concrete as they hauled themselves up the ramps. Some human cars came and went past them, now that the roads were cleared, but Jetstorm just passed right through them.

He reached one of the middle-levels before launching himself off of the edge and crashing back down to the road below. His ankles screamed from the impact, but he forced himself to keep moving.

He heard their voices hissing in frustration, some telling others to jump down as well.

Jetstorm limped away from it, zigzagging through the streets and never staying in one direction for very long. He kept going until their screeching movements were long since silenced, and he found himself not far from where the plant stood.

His systems wanted to shut down, to rest, but he didn't let them until he was inside the plant itself. All was quiet, which was a relief as Jetstorm collapsed to his hands and knees. His limbs were shaking, screaming out in pain as he crawled into the medical bay, and then hauled himself up onto the medical table.

Tears spilled down his cheeks as he closed his optics, letting himself go into sleep mode for the first time since all of this had started.

_Just a few cycles..._ he thought,_ I just need…A few cycles…_

* * *

Jetfire had been quietly discussing Sentinel with Optimus Prime when a surge of emotion had bounced into his helm like a lobbing ball. He had paused mid-sentence, looking back behind him with furrowed eyebrows.

"What is it?" Optimus inquired.

"…He is in trouble."

His fire matrix flared, sending smoke pluming out of his wrists. "S-Something is _chasing_ him!"

"Do you know where?"

Jetfire closed his optics tightly, trying to focus on the bond. His brother was terrified, and pulses of pain were coming through, but he could only determine one fact. "…He's close. BROTHER!"

The orange jettwin took off into the air, flying up over the buildings while Optimus transformed into vehicle mode and followed on the roads below. "Brother, I'm here! Where are you!?"

The bond tugged on him like a towline, pulling him closer to the streets. His optics skimmed amongst the white for any flashes of blue, but every time he'd see it, it would be a human's automobile or a dumpster in an alley. He was pulled along, weaving in and out of alleys and following a trail that he couldn't see, sometimes even circling around one area more than once. But it finally ended, and he landed to find himself standing in front of the plant. "…What is going on…!?" He whispered to himself.

He hurried into the plant, looking around the space. "Brother? Did you make it here now?"

"Did you find him?" Prowl asked as he and Jazz entered the front room.

"I…I was following, and…It brings me right back here." Jetfire murmured, and then he wandered into the hall. "…Have you seeing him?"

The two cyber-ninjas shook their heads, "Nothing, 'Fire." Jazz admitted, "You _sure_ he's _here_ somewhere?"

"Yes! I…I know it."

He wandered the hall for a few seconds, and the pull was tugging at him closer to the medical bay. He ran to the door and opened it, but found the room empty of any bots other than Ratchet. "…I…Don't understand."

"Jetfire…" Prowl started, but then he paused and was quiet for a moment. "…I will search the lower levels."

Jetfire sighed, trudging over to the medical table and plopping down on it.

"You gonna be here for a while, kid?"

Jetfire shrugged, "I do not know… Brother, where are you being?"

He had expected no answer, just the continuing silence, but then he heard a soft voice in his helm.

_I am not even knowing how to answer that..._

Jetfire then sat up, his optics wide. "Brother!?"


	4. Chapter 4

Jetfire was back up in moments. "Brother?"

"What's the matter, kid?" Ratchet questioned.

"I just heard him! He is here!" He looked around the room, and then began looking under the table, yanking open cabinets and pushing supplies aside, searching every inch of the medical bay.

_B-Brother-_

"There it is again!" He announced, pulling some of the tools out to look behind them.

"Kid, stop throwing things around! You're just making a mess!"

"Helping me look, Medic Ratchet. He is in here somewhere!"

Ratchet shook his head, "He's not. If he were, I'd have seen him."

"Then how are you explaining his speaking?"

"I can't explain it because- Watch it! _Kid_!" Ratchet snagged Jetfire's arm with his, stopping the tossing of bandages and tools all over the floor. "Kid, I don't hear _anything_ but you throwing my stuff around."

"Well I _am_ hearing."

"Then maybe you should lie down for a little."

Jetfire shook his head, pulling his arm free and then hurrying out of the medical bay. "I am searching the other places!"

Ratchet groaned, looking at the mess the twin had created. "Kids…Can't live with them…"

Jetfire hurried down the hall, searching Prowl's room first.

_B-Brother, would you-_

"I am coming, Brother! Do not be worrying!"

Jetfire then found the mechanical room and began tossing boxes around. "Brother, just be holding on! I am-!"

_FOR THE LOVE OF THE ALLSPARK! FREEZE!_

Jetfire paused, not moving from the crouched over position he was in. "…Why?"

He could hear his brother panting for a moment, and then his voice came through again. _By the Allspark… It is not easy to be keeping up with you when I am hurting…!_

"You are damaged!? Brother, did you-"

_J-Just be letting me speak, Brother… I _am_ damaged, and I am needing your help… I am being trapped somewhere. I can be seeing you, and hearing, but no touching… I am following you all this time, trying to get your attention._

"You…Why are you talking to me now? Why not before?"

_I have to be in exact place as you…Two halves, but standing in you like…A ghost... I am needing your help, Brother…_

Jetfire nodded, "What do I do?"

_Telling the others…They may have answers…And hurry…There are others chasing me and I cannot run well._

Jetfire nodded hard, feeling his brother's relief as his message had finally been received. "Do not be worrying, Brother. I will be getting you back, I promise!"

Though he didn't hear a response from his brother, the pulses of fear and sadness being replaced by much more positive emotions was enough.

"Jetfire, what the hell!?"

Jetfire turned to look at Sari and Bumblebee in the doorway. "Why are you throwing things everywhere!?"

"I…" Jetfire's fans flared as he felt his embarrassment heating up his systems, a flare of humor coming from his brother. "…I was looking for my brother… But he wasn't there."

"That's what we've been telling you!" Bumblebee responded, "We've looked everywhere and there's no sign!"

Jetfire grinned, "But he _is _here! Just trapped in a place we cannot see."

His smile faded however, as the pairs' eyes looked at him blankly. "…You do not believe me."

"Well... No."

Jetfire's eyebrows furrowed, "I am not fooling! You are having to believe me!"

"What's going on in here?"

Jetfire looked up as both Sentinel and Optimus entered the room, and then after a brief survey of the space, Sentinel turned to his fellow prime. "You repair-bots don't even keep a clean inventory!?"

Optimus rolled his optics, "Jetfire, what's going on?"

Bumblebee sighed, "He says that Jetstorm's here, but he's invisible."

"Not invisible. He is trapped in a different place, but the same place. He can see and hear, but cannot touch and we cannot see, or hear, or touch him. It is like he is _not_ here, but he _is_."

Sentinel's optics narrowed, "Aaaaand _how_ do you know this?"

"He told me."

"But you said we can't hear him."

"Correct...But-"

"So if we can't hear him, then how did he tell you?"

"I was able to hear him for moments! But I…It is very complicating!"

Sentinel sniffed, "And I suppose _you_ believe all of this, Optimus?"

Optimus crossed his arms, "Even _you_ know that there are things beyond Cybertronian understanding… It may be possible he is telling the truth."

"I _am_!" Jetfire insisted, "I am telling you, I am not crazy!"

"Nobody said you were crazy." Sari argued.

"Whether he's right in his processor or not, I am still confining you to base until we get solid proof!" Sentinel informed.

"But Sir-"

"That's an order, Soldier!"

Jetfire was still for a moment, and then gave a solemn nod. "…Understood."

"Good. Nice to see you respecting your commanding officer again."

Jetfire looked the Prime in the optic again, "I may have to be following your orders…But you have _not _earned the right to my respecting."

Optimus' optics narrowed as he watched the junior officer walk out, muttering something under his breath. Something was deteriorating, a status quo that had stood for quite some time, and he wasn't quite certain whether its repercussions would be positive or negative.

"Prowl…"

"Yes, Prime?" Prowl stepped forward.

Optimus lowered his tone to a whisper, "…Stay with Jetfire. Don't let him leave the plant unless I say so."

"Are you concerned he may bolt?"

"I just… _You_ survived death, so I have a strong suspicion Jetstorm did too, but I don't want Jetfire getting hurt trying to solve this issue on his own."

Prowl nodded, "What do you suggest we do?"

Optimus pondered for a moment, and then turned to Sari and Bumblebee. "Sari, you and Bumblebee head to Sumdac Tower. Talk to your father and see if can give us any confirmation into Jetfire's claims."

"You got it, Prime!" Sari announced, taking off out of the room with Bumblebee closely following.

"And where are _you_ going?" Sentinel questioned as Optimus started towards the door also.

"My rest quarters… I need some peace and quiet to focus on the situation…"

* * *

"Dad?" Sari hollered as she and Bumblebee came up the lift, "Me and Bumblebee are back!"

"Oh good. I was just about to call you, Sari." Professor Sumdac looked up from the control panel he'd been observing. "I think I have uncovered what has caused the overloading of the Space Bridge."

"Great! So you can fix it?" Bumblebee cheered.

"Of course. I am certain that Sentinel Prime would like to be off of Earth as quickly as possible."

Sari placed a hand on her father's shoulder, "Dad…What do you think about somebody getting stuck in another dimension?"

"How so?"

"Well Jetfire thinks that Jetstorm's stuck in some place where he can see and hear us, but can't touch us." Bumblebee explained, "And that we can't see, hear or touch him. Then he says that Jetstorm told him, right after saying we can't hear him! Kinda hypocritical…"

"So Jetstorm is trapped in a Half-Dimension…" Professor Sumdac murmured, "He is still here, but is trapped on a different plane of existence than we are."

"So you believe him?"

"Half-Dimensions have yet to be officially proven only in science fiction novels, but then again, up until a few years ago, so were_ aliens_."

"Touché…" Sari murmured, rubbing her chin. "…If that were the case, then how do we get him back?"

Professor Sumdac tapped the control panel, "He must have been sent there when the Spacebridge malfunctioned. It tried to transwarp him to another location, but was not able to do so before the portal collapsed."

"So he got stuck in-between." Sari surmised. "…We _can't _fix the Spacebridge yet. If we do, we may lose the conditions to reopen a portal into this other realm."

"So that means we can't get rid of Sentinel yet…?" Bumblebee whined, "_Man_…!"

Sari rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms, "Let's focus on saving Jetstorm, Bee. Sentinel can wait…What do we need to do?"

"For now, I would suggest trying to keep Jetstorm in one central location, so that we can find him when we get the portal opened again."

"Well now that he's made contact, I don't think he'll be going anywhere…"

* * *

A loud crash snapped Jetstorm out of sleep mode. He sat up from his place on the couch, his optics searching the room for the cause.

"What is it, Brother?" Jetfire asked, looking around as well and no doubt feeling his brother's panic.

Jetstorm moved slowly into position so that he could reply. "…Did _you_ hear a loud crashing…?"

"…No. _You_?"

"Yes…" Jetstorm whispered. If his brother had not heard it, then it must be in this other realm, and so far, there were only a few options as to what had caused it. "…I am thinking it may be the other bots chasing me…!"

"Other bots?" Jetfire needlessly lowered his voice to a whisper, "…Explain, brother."

"They are…_Broken_ bots. Pieces missing and they chase me around… I do not know why."

The blue jettwin paused as he heard movement again, a scraping of metal against metal coming from just outside the doors of the plant. "…I am having to go."

"Brother wait!" Jetfire pleaded, but Jetstorm had pulled away. He heard his brother continue to find him, waving his arms around like a blind bot wandering in darkness; as if Jetfire would know where Jetstorm was by touching him at this point.

Jetstorm tiptoed towards the doors, doing his best not to make any noise with his steps. But he hadn't even reached it when a rusty, clawed hand grabbed onto the side of the doorframe. He jumped back and then took off into the plant. They'd found him again.

He entered the hallway, looking around the number of rooms. He could hide in any one of them, but once he was inside, he would be trapped…

…No, there was_ one_ that held an escape.

Jetstorm rushed to the door of Prowl's room, slipping into it and then looking up at the tree in the center. Because of the colder months, it was bare of leaves, the remaining trunk stretching out into long, sharp pointed branches.

He might not be able to fly with his injuries, but he could still jump; the only question was whether or not he'd just phase right through the roof when he tried to get up onto it.

He decided to take his chances, jumping up and giving a sigh of relief as his hands found something solid under them. He hauled himself up onto the rooftop, grimacing as his injured joints protested the strenuous motion. "Okie dokie… What am I doing now? They are inside looking, I am outside… Where do I go…?"

His optics looked around the surroundings below for any that might be guarding the perimeter, and then he hopped down to the ground. He started to limp down the street, before a pair of hands reached out and yanked him backwards into an alley. "H-Hey!"

"SHH!" A voice hissed in his audio receptor as a hand slapped over his mouth, "They'll find us…!"

Jetstorm shifted position to look at the bot that'd spoken, and came face to face with a young femme whose frame was mostly covered by a cloak of organic material. "…You are _helping_ me…?"

"You may be the only chance I have to get _out _of this horrible place, so yes."

She covered his mouth again and pulled him even further into the alley as one of the mangled bots passed. "…It is not safe here right now… Follow me."

Jetstorm looked back at the plant as he heard his brother still calling out for him, and then took the femme's hand tightly. "We will be coming_ back_ here, yes?"

"Yes, but not now. Now come on, we don't have long."

Jetstorm nodded, and then allowed her to lead him away and back into the emptiness of the city.


	5. Chapter 5

The unknown was one of the most terrifying things, because it likes to appear just when things seem to finally be going the way you want them... but that had never stopped it from showing its faceplate to an unsuspecting Autobot from time to time.

Optimus Prime knew this better than anyone. He'd once thought that his future had been certain, graduating from the Autobot Academy and joining in the defense of Cybertron from the looming presence of the banished Decepticons…

…Well, that_ last_ part had come true, but not in the way he'd expected.

Jetfire was correct; that fated trip to Arach 7 had changed plans…Changed _people_. Optimus had lost two friends that day, two bots that had stood by his side for a long time, and now wanted nothing more than to make him suffer.

Because of that, he'd been knocked off of the tracks of certainty and into a limbo that seemed to lead to more certainty in his job as a repair bot…Until the Allspark itself had derailed that train as well. Now he was on a planet not his own, never knowing what the next morning would bring, _who_ it might bring.

The Prime laid quietly on his berth, optics closed in thought. His processor shifted back in time several months, back to the day that Prowl had returned from the dead...

Bumblebee had been left at the plant alone to keep an optic on the comms. The rest of the team had been half-way to the other side of town when the little yellow bot had suddenly screamed into the comms. that he'd just heard Prowl back at the plant. The rest of the bots had rushed back and found no trace of the cyber-ninja, and Ratchet had suggested that Bumblebee was still struggling with grief and was just hearing things.

Bumblebee hadn't believed that, and had snuck out of the plant to pursue what had seemed like a phantom of his imagination…Until he found Prowl in a feline-bot form in the woods outside of town, and had lured the scout out there as a test.

But until that moment…They'd all thought Bumblebee was losing his processor…And they'd been wrong.

Optimus sat up again, both because he'd made up his mind on whether he believed any of Jetfire's claims, and also because he heard Jetfire's frantic voice coming from out in the common area. He got up and hurried out, finding Jetfire on his knees, his helm in his hands. "Jetfire, what's wrong?"

"He's gone! _Again_!" The orange jettwin complained, "He was just here, telling me that the bots chasing him are here, and then-"

"Wait, he's bein' tailed!?" Jazz argued, "You couldn't have clued us in on that _before_!?"

"I was being busy convincing you that I was hearing him _at all_!"

Optimus bent down, putting his hands on Jetfire's shoulders, "Do you know _why _they're chasing him?"

"No sir… He did not have the time to be telling me. I…I do not know if _he_ knows." The jettwin looked up at Optimus' optics, a faint smile appearing. "You…You are believing me?"

Optimus nodded hard, "I do…"

"Good, cuz so does my dad!"

The bots all looked up as Sari and Bumblebee came into the plant. "He says that Jetstorm was caught in the spacebridge explosion, and it tried to warp him somewhere else, but then it collapsed and it trapped him in another plane of existence!"

"So he _is _still here on Earth!" Prowl understood with a sigh of relief, "Thank the Allspark."

"Well how do we get him back?" Bulkhead asked.

"My dad thinks he can reopen the portal again, but only for a short amount of time, or else we might just repeat the accident and pull someone else in with him, so we need Jetstorm to be there at the Tower when he does open it."

"Well that's just_ great_." Optimus murmured, as Jetfire grabbed his helm again with a loud groan, "…Because Jetstorm apparently just _left_…and he's not the _only_ bot in this 'other plane of existence'…"

Prowl sighed, rubbing his optics with a hand, "I have a feeling we are all going to need some high grade energon after this..."

"So what you're saying is that Jetfire needs to go track him down again." Bumblebee guessed.

"No. If Jetfire goes after him, then he may very well be leading these other bots right to where Jetstorm's hiding."

"Not to mention he's confined to the plant until I say otherwise!" Sentinel reminded firmly.

Optimus sighed, "For now...We just need to wait here and hope he comes back here." _Before we all lose our processors..._

* * *

"B-Be slowing down for a moment!" Jetstorm stammered as he was practically dragged behind the femme. "I-I am not able to be running very well…!"

The femme looked back at him, and then paused. "Then I will carry you."

Jetstorm stiffened, "Oh. N-No, that is not necessary-EEEEE!"

He yelped as she yanked him up, his arms quickly wrapping around her neck to hold on as he plopped onto her back and she then resumed their fleeing. "T-Thank you…I guess."

"Oh you are quite welcome." The bot then turned into another alley, "I carry other bots all the time! Most of the bots I hang out with are like, super slow, and I hate going slow when we're supposed to be getting somewhere fast. I'd rather be somewhere early, you know?"

"I-I am guessing that makes sense…But I am wondering who you-"

Jetstorm broke off and held on tighter as the femme released him to reach up to the top of a building, pulling both of them up onto the rooftop. His optics widened however, as her arms and legs hadn't extended like the spy Shockwave's did when he was masquerading as Longarm; no, hers literally _stretched,_ like the pink substance that often got stuck to bot's peds in Earth parking lots.

As she pulled herself back into a solid shape, he saw her entire frame was that way. Silvery and shiny like melted aluminum, her hands were continuously shifting shape and size as she took on a mostly bot-shaped form.

"You…You are not solid." He murmured.

"Nope, but I did_ you_ one!" She announced with a cackle, putting him down once more. "Those walking-scrap-piles are _not _good wall-scalers. As long as we stay up here they can't reach us! Unless they find a ladder. Do you see any ladders around here?"

"Why…Why are you not solid?"

She shrugged, "Was just forged that way. Some people say it's why I can't get a date. I'm too shifty. Man I could use some high-grade right now. You ever tried High Grade? Nah, you look too young for that. But I'll bet that faceplate of yours could convince any bot to sneak you some, am I right?"

"I…I don't know?" Jetstorm shook his helm, "P-Pardon, but…Who are you being, anyways?"

The femme's legs vanished as she slithered across the rooftop and began fiddling with an antenna, though her fingers passed right through it. "The name's Alloy, Pretty-Bot. I'm what you might call a femme of many talents, an ever-shifting bot of mysterious motives on a never-ending journey of discovery. Did you know I hold the record for most times climbing up from the Well of Allsparks?"

"I-"

"Three times, Pretty-Bot! Only forged once, but I got up to the top and BOOM! Kicked in the faceplate and knocked back down to the bottom. I climb back up and it happens a second time! But I was ready that third time, oh yes! I shot up that hole like a fraggin' torpedo and landed almost a klik from the top on re-entry! What do you say to that!?"

"I don't-"

"You don't talk much, do you? Oh well, this is the first time I've had a real conversation in weeks! You get what I'm saying?"

"Stop!" Jetstorm placed a hand to his helm, "…I cannot be focusing on all of it right now…!"

"Oh…Right, you're _hurt_."

She slithered back over, her neck stretching out like a swan's as she looked him over. "Hmm…Usually I'd have the twins to help with this kind of thing. You probably wouldn't like them, they mess with mechs more than I do. But Flash! Oh, you'd like her. She is such a great person to hang out with, you two would probably get along splendidly!"

Jetstorm caught her hand, though grimacing as it squished in his grip. "C-Could you explain what is going on? Why are the other broken bots chasing me?"

Alloy grinned widely, "Ever heard of…Spare parts…?"

Jetstorm's optics widened as he pulled away from her a little, "You are doing the freaking me out…!"

"Yeah…You know how that big-chinned dope is thinking your brother's completely lost his mental cogs? Well I have never had too many of those myself to begin with!" She curled around the chimney of the roof they were on before drooping down over the side upside down. "It comes with my condition."

"You are meaning your body being made of…Putty?" Jetstorm guessed; suddenly following this femme around was not looking to have been the smartest idea.

"Exactly! I am what you might call a permanent child-body. It never solidified, leaving me as this malleable, taffy-like form that can take inexpressible damage without actual damage. So while those other, busted chasses are getting smashed into plates on impact, I bounce off like a rubber ball…!"

She dropped down to the ground again, her body pulling itself back from its stretched state. "Fancy, no?"

"No…I-I mean yes! I just…What were you saying about impact?"

Alloy sighed, "This place, we call it a Shadowzone. It is here, but not here, yes? Anyway, it's like a giant bubble caught in a current. When a faulty Spacebridge closes, the bubble gets stuck there, but when it opens up in another location at a different spacebridge, we are sucked from where we were, down the tube…" Her arm stretched and slithered like a snake until it smacked into the chimney's base with a splat. "…Until it closes again and we smack into it."

"So…You and the other bots are bouncing around the galaxy for…A long time?"

"Yeah… Well, I've only been in here for a few weeks, just hangin' out, you know? But when the other bots hit the invisible wall, they get a little…_crushed_. All that being smashed and yanked all over the universe has left them busted up, and nuttier than _I _am!" She cackled a little, and then relaxed. "…every once in a while, a new bot gets pulled into the loop with them, and all _they_ see is new parts to fix their broken ones, you know?"

Jetstorm shuddered, "If they are catching me…"

"Yeah, you'll probably lose pieces of your...well, _everything_. But that's not gonna happen, because you got me! And I can protect you until we can both get back out of here when your buddies on the other side open the pipe again!"

"But…What about the others? Should we not be rescuing them too? It is not_ their_ fault they have had a bad time."

Alloy groaned, "Well…I _suppose… _If we can lure them _all the way_ back up that tower-thingy to the spacebridge…That one humanoid with the crazy hair is kinda weirdo, you know?"

"That…I _do _know." Jetstorm agreed, and then pulled himself back up onto his feet. "…Where do we be going now?"

"Well, we should probably keep walking around until they all file out of your buddies' place, so we can go back and tell your twin the plan, right?"

Jetstorm nodded, "But not too faster, okie dokie?"

Alloy grinned widely again, and her frame changed to that of a bird-like shape with a bot's faceplate. "Hop on, Pretty-Bot!"

"My name is Jetstorm."

"Jetstorm? Huh, I think I know somebody who knows a bot named Jetstorm too, cuz that name sounds familiar…"

Jetstorm climbed back onto her back, "Um…You are able to be flying, right?"

Alloy shrugged, "Never really tried. Hold on!"

Jetstorm clung tightly to her neck as she then jumped off of the top of the building. They freefell for only a moment before her new wings caught the air and she rose once again into the air, gliding over the streets. "Sweet Allspark…! I am hoping this weirdness is not lasting much longer…"


	6. Chapter 6

"Okay… Stay calm…"

Optimus stood in his quarters alone, the door closed as he paced back and forth. What to say? The second he walked in there, Sentinel would just disregard everything he said to him. But he needed to speak to him, to set a few things straight, even if Sentinel didn't like it.

He took a moment to collect himself, and then marched straight out of his quarters. "Jazz, where is Sentinel?" He inquired.

"I saw 'im a few cycles ago down in the lower levels. He was mumblin' somethin' about no respectin' your elder bots."

Optimus nodded, and then passed the ninja to head downstairs to the basement. Even as he entered the elevator, he could hear his former friend speaking from below, and as he entered the lower levels, he followed the sound into the large room Soundwave had once trapped them in, now devoid of hardly _any _technology, cybertronian _or_ human.

Sentinel was standing in the center, speaking quietly as if he were addressing the High Council on a topic.

Optimus had once joked that losing the respect of his subordinates might drive the Elite Guard mad, but now he was hoping that hadn't been the case. "…Sentinel?"

Sentinel whipped around frantically, his optics wide for a moment before narrowing. "You heard _nothing_, Optimus! Nothing!"

Optimus fought back a groan, "Sentinel, I need to talk to you."

"Oh, about what? About how much of a failure I am at keeping my troops in line? Or how it's my fault that you're trapped here on this cursed planet? Or my fault that Jetstorm is trapped in some other dimen-"

The Elite Guard had expected Optimus to interrupt him with some response, but not by grabbing him by the armor and slapping his cheek hard.

"Snap out of it, Soldier!" Optimus barked, his voice echoing off of the metal walls. "This is no time for you to lose your grip on the situation!"

Sentinel stared at his fellow prime for several shocked seconds, and then his eyebrows furrowed as Optimus stepped back from him. "…Right." He cleared his throat, "You are correct…Dare I say it…Thank you."

"You're welcome, I guess… Now you need to get this situation back under control."

"Oh, since when are you letting me take command rather than taking it from me ever time I'm on this miserable planet!?"

"Whether I agree with your methods or not- which I _don't_\- Jetstorm and Jetfire are _your _junior officers, and neither one of them is going to regain their respect for you unless you do something to prove you're worthy of their respect."

"Are you suggesting that's not what I've been doing this entire time!?"

"From where I stand, all you've been to them is a bully who is constantly putting them down. And no bot is going to respect a bully once they themselves had gained a backbone."

"And that's supposed to be encouraging?"

"No. It's supposed to point out where you need to improve your social skills."

"I don't need your advice!" Sentinel turned away from his fellow prime, and the room was silent for several minutes before he relaxed, seeming to have submitted to the fact that Optimus wasn't going to just leave.

"…How do you do it?"

"What?"

"…Your team's all so… Buddy-Buddy…! How did you get them to treat_ you_ with respect…!?"

"By following a few things I've learned from humans… First of all, if you want respect, you have to give it to others first. Second, I trust my team to keep me in check. They're not afraid to tell me when I'm wrong, and I don't punish them for it. And third…"

"Yes…!?"

"…I know that I'm not perfect, and there isn't a single organism, mechanical or organic, that _is_." His eyebrows furrowed, "…What happened in the past cannot be changed. The best we can do is let go of the past…and move into the next step."

The young prime left the room without waiting to see or hear Sentinel's response. He'd said what he'd needed to say, and it had lifted some of the weight off of his shoulders. He could not make Sentinel put the past to rest, but he could do so for himself, and that was all he could do…

* * *

Jetstorm clung tightly to Alloy's shoulders as she landed back on the ground, her wings folding in around his legs as she overlooked the lake to their right. "…We might be safer under the iciness of the water." He suggested.

"Uh uh. No can do. We can't get over there from here."

Jetstorm's head tilted to the side, "…Why not? We are being very close."

Alloy stepped towards the water, but just a few feet from the water's edge, she stopped. "Reach out there, Tiny. You'll see. We can't go any further."

Jetstorm climbed off of her back, walking towards the water before suddenly running into something. "Ah!... What is _this_…?"

"You know how I said the Shadowzone is like a bubble in a current? Well bubbles have walls." She leaned against the barrier, her shoulder squishing in the process. "This is the wall. We can only go as far as this on this side, and your friends' base is near the other side. The center is always where the portal that put us here was formed."

Jetstorm looked back into the city, and to Sumdac Tower. "…The human professor's tower…That is the middle."

"Right! Wow, this Earth is so weird compared to mine. I mean, I've never been to my Earth, but Flash tells me it's cool, so I believe her. But her Earth doesn't know about us- Well, some humans do, but they make up like… zero zero zero zero. Zero zero zero-"

She was stopped by Jetstorm putting a hand over her mouth.

"…Your Earth?" Jetstorm questioned. "Are you telling me there are more than one?"

Alloy gave that wide, not quite sane grin once more. "There _are_, Stormy… There are _billions…!_" She giggled excitedly. "Just think! Every single decision made by every single intelligent being in the universe creates an alternate timelines, alternate versions of the universe! Ever circling together in an ever-twirling dance, guarded by powerful beings called Anomalies that keep the peace by taking bots from one world and dumping them in others!"

"You mean that we could_ see_ these other worlds?"

"_Absolutely_! I got here from an experiment me and my buddies were working on, but I'll bet if you asked one of the Anomalies to take you somewhere, they would. But you gotta know them by name, and not very many people know their names. I think the Optimus Prime from my world knows one. Oh! I can't believe you know Optimus Prime! I've always _wanted_ to meet mine!"

"He is a popular bot, then?"

"_Popular_!? He's a Prime, for Prime's sake!" Alloy jumped up and down, "One of the greatest heroes of our entire universe! And one of the _oldest_, now that I think about it. He's rather good-looking for someone his age-"

Jetstorm decided to try to steer her consciousness. "Alloy…Are you thinking we can go back to the plant now? I am thinking the broken bots will be gone now."

"Hmm. You're probably right. Hop on again!?"

"N-No thanking you. I will be walking, please."

"It will be faster. You can get back to your twin faster and tell him more."

Jetstorm looked down at his arm struts. Though they did not hurt as much now, they were still bent. Still, he wanted to do this himself.

Transforming was a struggle with his damaged systems, but with a pained grunt, his limbs and helm folded in and he took on jet form. He swayed to the side, but eventually steadied himself. "V-Very well…Let us go."

Alloy gave him a suspicious look, and then shifted completely into the form of a large bird. "Yes…let's."

* * *

"…You don't look too happy."

Jetfire rolled over on the couch, his optics narrowed as he looked up at the large, green bot that was looking down at him. "_No_…Whatever is making you think I am _not_ happy…?" He responded with a forced grin. "It is only that my brother is missing and I am not able to go searching for him!"

His brother was hurting a little more intensely now than he had been a little while ago. He could only hope his brother hadn't gotten into any serious trouble and hurt himself further.

Bulkhead stepped back a pace, "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to-"

"No… It is _me_ who is sorry…" Jetfire sat up, giving a hard sigh. "I am just being frustrated… My brother is hurting and running away from somethings, and I cannot be helping him or even comforting him."

"Well, I may not have a brother, but I know what it's like to have somebody you care about go missing and not knowing how to help them." Bulkhead sat down next to the jet, "When Bumblebee went missing I didn't even know where to start looking… But then he found his own way home… Jetstorm will probably do the same thing."

Jetfire sighed, "I am hoping you are right…"

Flares of irritation at something had been periodically pulsing from his brother over the past little while, but were now being accompanied by concern and fear. What was his brother doing?

But all at once he felt a wave of intensity, like his brother was right there, and then Jetstorm's voice rang out in his head again.

_Ow!_

"Brother, you are back!" Jetfire jumped to his feet.

_Ah…Yes. I am being back._

"He is?" Bulkhead cheered, and then hurried off. "Good, I'll go tell Prime!"

Jetfire nodded, and then turned back to his brother's words. "Did you lose the pursuing bots?"

_Well I am thinking so. I am just- _

Jetfire then felt a wave of irritation from his brother, followed by pain._ No, I don't think it does work that-OW!_

"Brother, are you okie dokie?"

_Go stand all squishy over there!... Yes, Brother. I am just making a new friend… Sort of._

Jetfire bit his lip to keep from laughing at the predicament his brother seemed to have gotten into. "Well we are having a plan. You must be going back to the Spacebridge so we can be remaking the portal to let you out."

_That is sounding like a good plan. We will be going there and meeting you?_

"Good plan! Be seeing you soon, Brother!"

Jetfire gave a sigh of relief as his brother's presence started to move away again, but only for a short amount of time.

"Did you get through to him again?"

Optimus and the rest of the team hurried into the front room, Sentinel and Jazz close behind.

"I did! He is going to the Sumdac Tower to meet with us. We need to hurry!"

"Finally, some good news in all of this." Sentinel sighed, "Let's go!"


	7. Chapter 7

Jetfire led the charge, an orange streak pluming over the skyscrapers like the rocket he was reformatted to be.

Optimus led the grounded members, with Sentinel directly behind after refusing to 'guard the rear'. Humans peered out the windows from within their buildings and homes, figuring that if all of the Autobots were B-lining for the same area, it was safer to be indoors.

"Why are we going so slow!?" Sentinel complained, "I thought you said those signs told you how fast to go!"

"That's when the roads are in optimal condition." Sari informed from within Bumblebee's cab, "When they're slick like this, it's best to stay safe."

"Not to mention that it's not over." Prowl sniffed the air from on top of Bulkhead's roof, "I'm smelling another storm rolling in."

"Brilliant…!" Optimus muttered, "How long do we have?"

"One hour, tops."

**Then let us be making this rescue as quick as we can**. Jetfire announced.

"Agreed." Optimus gave a slight shudder as a cold blast of wind slammed into him from across the lake. _Just hold on, Jetstorm… We're coming._

"And welcome back! Minimal traffic on the roads today, thanks to a blizzard of frozen liquid condensed into tiny little discs that are small even by human standards! To your right is the lake known as Eerie! Certainly doesn't seem too creepy to me, but hey, _I _didn't name it! And now we go to my fellow reporter, Jetstorm, with the weather! Take it away, Jet!"

Jetstorm groaned as he listened to Alloy's chattering. She was trapped in this bubble of space just like him, but seemed to think the entire experience was some sort of game! She might not be injured like he was, but she could at least take the situation seriously!

"I am not in the mood." He muttered, the cold air blasting him to the side a little. His systems were already tiring, his helm aching; he couldn't run for very long like this. "Why are you so playing and not being helpful…?"

Alloy looked his direction, her usual smile gone and for the first time since they'd met, she spoke with full seriousness and clarity. "It throws people off. I pretend to be all goofy and fun-loving, but it's only to keep myself smiling."

The pair reached the tower, landing on the rooftop and Alloy's stabilizers melting into a puddle as she crossed her arms and looked away. "In my early cycles, I was labeled as a low-threat Decepticon, simply because I _might _be a danger to other bots as well as myself. That's what spurred me to join my guild, to help stop other young bots from being wrongfully labeled."

"Sounds like it is a hard job."

"It is…But I have friends there that don't care if I am different, and being this way helps me focus on the positive parts of a situation and not the negative." She then looked out and gave a smirk, "Here he comes."

Jetstorm looked out, a smile coming onto his faceplate as he saw his brother flying towards them. The others wouldn't be far behind, but a cold blast from the lake made him turn and look, seeing dense clouds seeming to drop from the horizon. "It is looking like another storm."

"Yup… Flash calls them blizzards; she said that they can freeze a bot's systems real quick!"

"Then we should hurry."

Jetstorm turned back to his brother as the orange twin transformed in mid-air and then landed on the rooftop of the tower, a smile on his own face.

"The other bots are on the way, Professor Sumdac!" He announced, "The icing on the ground is slowing them down."

"You had better be careful yourself." Professor Sumdac warned, pointing to the ice crystals that were forming along the edges of the rooftop. "Being this high can freeze your wings."

Jetfire gave a confident grin, "I am being too hot for ice. And seeing? The ice does not go where machines are."

"Hmm…I would still be cautious."

Alloy bent down, following Professor Sumdac around the rooftop. "Whoa… He's so small! And look at how pointy his hair follicles are…Do you think that's natural?"

Jetstorm rolled his eyes, watching the femme go back into her overly-curious, never-frowning, air-helmed persona again. At least he knew now that it was all an act.

"Is your brother here?" Professor questioned.

Jetfire gave a nod, "I can feel his happiness to see me."

Indeed, Jetstorm was happy. He was about to get out of this nightmare, and the first thing he was going to do was hug his brother tighter than he ever had…and then he was going to take a long stasis nap.

"Him…!"

The pair turned around quickly, seeing the broken bots crawling out from under debris and around posts. "No…How did they follow us so quickly?" Jetstorm worried.

"They must've overheard your friends going over their plan and knew we'd come here eventually."Alloy hissed, "Primus… These guys are smarter than I thought…!"

The femme's hands then shifted into knives, tendrils slithering of her back, "How're your turbines?"

Jetstorm made a quick test, disappointed when they didn't send out the gust he wanted. "Functioning…But not good."

"Well do what you can…And I'll cover the rest!" She slashed straight through the arms of two of them. "I don't think we can reason with them, Jet."

"I am afraid you are right." Jetstorm admitted, "They are too dangerous to be letting them loose in Detroit."

He fired his turbines as hard as his injuries would permit; giving a sigh of relief as after a brief sputter they came back to full strength, sending the zombies flying away. "We are just needing to keep them off until the portal is opening…!"

"Right!"

Alloy's tendrils and knife-like fingers slashed into the metal, the zombies not even registering their injuries. "Damn, what have these guys been snorting, Dark Energon powder!?"

"I am going to not worry about not understanding _anything_ you have just said."

Jetstorm transformed back into jet mode to get a better view for any others that may be planning an ambush, hovering despite the wind threatening to blow him off the roof. Now the zombies were forming a tower to reach him. One launched itself onto his wing, and with his weakened systems, it was enough to knock him off balance once more.

He crashed back down to the roof, his helm hitting the concrete and sending his processor into a spin. He heard Alloy's voice as darkness overwhelmed him, and then as she smacked his cheek, he snapped back into clarity. "Ugh…!"

"I've got them off of you…"

The femme's glowing optics were the only thing visible as her body formed a defensive bubble around him, blocking out all sunlight. "But I can't be a dome forever…! You good?"

Jetstorm pulled himself to his feet, his eyebrows furrowing. "…Yes." He informed.

He shot out a blast of air in all directions as Alloy pulled back from over him, sending any zombies that were close away from them. His optics shifted to his brother, and then to the elevator where the other bots were appearing from. "Just a few more moments…!"

"Slowpokers!" Jetfire shouted as the other bots finally appeared in the elevator. "Let's go let's go!"

"Chill out, Jetfire…" Sari giggled as the jettwin hopped up and down with impatience, "We know you want your brother back, but-"

"Yes! Chilling! That is what will be happening when _that_ gets here!" He pointed to the snowstorm, which looked like it had picked up speed. They were losing time fast.

"Okay, we get your point, Jetfire." Optimus agreed, looking down to the human at the controls. "Are we set for launch, Professor?"

"Give me two minutes." Professor Sumdac informed.

"Please be hurrying, my brother is feeling very panicked right now. I am thinking those broken bots are coming to get him!"

"We're going as fast as we can, Jetfire."

The orange jettwin looked at the spacebridge arch, his hands wringing together and eyebrows scrunched with worry.

"…Spacebridge portal activated!"

The bots all watched as the portal once again shifted to its unusual color, but seemed to be a little more stable.

A minute passed…Then another.

"I cannot keep this open _forever_, Optimus…!" Professor Sumdac warned.

"What's taking him so long?" Bumblebee murmured.

Optimus shook his helm, "…I don't-"

He broke off as he heard a gasp from Jetfire, and looked to see the orange jet clutching his chestplate with wide, blankly-staring optics. "Jetfire!?"

The junior officer was still for a moment, and then he whimpered as his optics rolled back and he collapsed, caught up in Jazz's arms.

"Jetfire? Jetfire, come on." Jazz worried as the twin lay limply in his arms, his optics flickering slightly as he whimpered.

"He's going into shock." Ratchet informed, helping Jazz lay the young bot down on the rooftop. "Something real bad must've happened to Jetstorm to spur _this_ kind of reaction."

Optimus and Sentinel locked optics, looking at one another before both nodding hard and eyebrows furrowing. "Professor Sumdac, hold it open as long as you can!" Optimus ordered, and then both Primes jumped through the portal.

They might not have been able to go back for Elita, but they _could _save Jetstorm.

The pair free-fell for a brief moment before landing on the rooftop once more, but this time, the colors around them were muted, almost gray. The portal was just as colorful and unstable on this side as well, but for the time being, it was holding.

"Jetstorm!" Sentinel hollered, looking around the rooftop. Their teammates were all standing there just like before, but there was an odd echo to their voices, almost like being underwater.

**Boss Bot! **Bumblebee called through the comms. **You guys okay in there?**

"We're fine, Bumblebee." Optimus informed.

"If our comms work here, then why didn't Jetstorm just use _his_?" Sentinel complained.

"His must've been broken when he got pulled in here… Jetstorm!?"

The pair paused as they then heard a clanging and voices coming from the staircase up to the roof. "Down there!"

They took off to the door, pausing for a moment before phasing through the top in order to fit. They saw on the nearest landing were several mangled, broken bots attacking a shape made of liquid metal that was standing over Jetstorm, his chest compartment ripped open and spark exposed.

No wonder Jetfire had collapsed as well; one half of their shared spark was in danger.

"What in the Allspark!?" Sentinel cried at the sight of the odd being guarding his soldier.

"Could use a_ hand_ here!" They barked; a femme bot's faceplate shifting to look at them as their sharp claws of fingers sliced into one of the attackers.

Optimus moved into action, quickly followed by Sentinel. Answers could wait; right now, Jetstorm and Jetfire _both_ needed them.

Optimus pulled out his axe and swung it, cutting parts off of the zombie-like bots that suddenly seemed to think them to be better targets.

Sentinel impaled one on his spear, shaking it loose and his optics widening as it didn't even seem deterred by the action. "What _are_ these things!?" He asked with disgust.

"Not cybertronians." Optimus answered as he chopped one's head off. "Not anymore…"

He dodged a slash from the femme's hand, yelping as one of the zombies bit into his leg armor. "Get off! Ugh, that's gross!" He kicked them loose, looking at what seemed to be a never-ending barrage of attacks. "This isn't doing much of anything. We need a new plan!"

**Optimus! **Sari hollered into the comm. **The portal's destabilizing! You need to get out of there now!**

"Looks like we don't have much of a choice." Sentinel responded, "Fall back!"

The femme scooped Jetstorm up into one arm, cradling him close to her as she continued to fight back the monsters. "Hold on, Jet! I've got you…!"

Her hand molded into a flowing shape of proto-matter that covered the hole in Jetstorm's chest, protecting his circuits from the cold, harsh air blowing around them.

Optimus knocked the zombies back, slashing pieces off with his axe as they went. Sentinel led the charge, and once Sentinel was clear, Optimus tapped his comm. "Close the portal! Now!"

**But Boss Bot-**

"NOW!"

The portal began to shrink, and at the last moment, Optimus and the femme leapt through. The prime felt one of the zombies grab onto his leg, and as he crashed back onto solid concrete and the portal snappd shut with a loud bang, he saw half of the zombie had made it through, still digging its denta into his shin. "AUGH!"

It was removed quickly with a hard smack from Bulkhead's wrecking ball, and Jazz held it down with his foot as it clawed for freedom. "Nasty…! These things were tailin' Storm the whole time…!?"

Optimus gave a nod, though grimacing as he saw the energon oozing out of the deep bite marks on his leg. "Ah…! Let's back a pact to never go back there, okay…!?"

"What in the Allspark is that!?" Bumblebee cried in horror as the femme uncurled herself from around Jetstorm.

"Gee thanks, Bee…!" She muttered, and then she carried Jetstorm over to Ratchet. "Here…"

Ratchet went to work immediately, and then the femme looked back to Optimus with a wide grin before holding a hand out in greeting. "Now that that's all been dealt with… It is just an honor to meet you, Optimus Prime! I have always wanted to shake your hand!"

Optimus raised an eyebrow in surprise, but shook her hand, finding it surprisingly firm for the moment. "Thank you…? And you are?"

"Agent Alloy of the Neutralist Peace Alliance, Exploratory Guild, sir!" She then looked off behind them and his optics widened. "Uh…Maybe we should get inside? That storm's gettin' kinda close…!"

Optimus looked back behind him and then nodded. "Agreed. Let's move the pits out of here, Autobots!"


	8. Epilogue

"OW!"

That was the first thing out of Jetstorm's voice box as he snapped back into wakefulness. His optics were wide open and then clenched shut again as the pain set in. "Ah…!"

"Oh please, I barely touched you."

He forced his optics open again as he heard Ratchet's voice speaking, but was it to him? Was he finally back where he belonged?

"Brother!"

Jetstorm yelped as his brother shoved Ratchet aside and practically squished his twin as he rushed in for a hug. But the pain was immediately replaced by a huge wave of joy and relief slamming into him; his brother was touching him, he and his brother were reunited.

"Brother…!" He whimpered, and then he began to cry. Not the frightened, confused tears of last time, but just the relief of being home and all of the stress being let out at once.

Jetfire began to cry as well, and Ratchet stepped back to allow them this moment. They clung to each other, gripping each other's armor for dear life. "You are awake…!"

"I am touching you!... I am home…!"

A few minutes passed, and then Ratchet finally broke it up. "Alright alright, before this gets any sappier." The medic gently pushed Jetfire back, "I still have some work to do. Lie down."

Jetstorm obeyed but took his brother's hand as Jetfire rushed around to the other side of the table. Now that they were able to touch again, they didn't want to let go. "…Alloy, is she-"

"Your weird friend is fine." Ratchet muttered, "Bumblebee is teaching her how to play video games… Oh, joy."

"AH! Ow ow ow…!"

"Sorry about that, Kid. You know how much I hate to cause pain…"

"That is being sarcastic, yes?"

Ratchet chuckled, "You pick up on things fast, Kid…Bite down; this'll sting."

The twins' grip on each other's hands tightened as Jetstorm grimaced, but he tried to focus on his brother's pulses of energy through their bond. It was as strong as ever now, that connection that would forever make them a part of each other.

The medic finished up his work and then started to walk out of the medical bay. "You two can have some time, but…" He narrowed his optics as he waved a finger at Jetfire, "No throwing things around, got it?"

"I am knowing where he is _now_!" Jetfire complained, and then as the medic left, he climbed up onto the table with his brother. "You alright, Brother?"

Jetstorm smirked, "…What does your spark feeling…?" He asked, poking a finger at his brother's chest plate.

Jetfire chuckled and gently poked Jetstorm back. "Tired… I missed you, Brother…"

"Same to me, Brother…" He placed his hands on his brother's shoulders, "…I could feel you, Brother… But I _couldn't_ feel you…You knowing?"

"I am knowing…" The fire plane curled up beside his brother on the table, the pair pressing their helms together. "…Resting now…No being locked up in plane…"

"No more Shadowzone…"

* * *

"How're they doing?" Optimus kept his tone low as he saw Ratchet leaving the medical bay.

The old medic was silent for a moment and then gave a smile. "Heh. They're going to be back on their stabilizers in no time, Prime."

Optimus gave a sigh of relief; the last thing he wanted to do was tell Sentinel that the pair weren't in good shape and he'd be here even longer than thought. But they were safe now, and soon everything could be back to something close to normal.

"What about _you_? You're still limping."

"I'm fine, Ratchet." Optimus looked down at his leg where the zombie had bitten into his metal, and was quite relieved that it was now locked up. "I only wish we could have avoided all of this."

"You can't plan for what you don't know exists, Prime."

The pair then grimaced as they heard a cry of despair from Bumblebee. "He must've lost again."

They walked back out into the living room, where Alloy was draped over the couch and Bumblebee was pouting.

"How do you do that!?" The little yellow Autobot complained, "I thought_ I_ was the best at video games!"

"From _your_ reality, perhaps." Alloy teased, and then flipped up onto her feet. "Well, I enjoyed our little time, but its time I go back to my own peeps! They'll be waiting on the data I've got!"

"But I thought you were pulled into the Shadowzone and were stranded here." Sari expressed.

Alloy giggled, "I never said that I was _stuck_ here! I was simply having far too much _fun_ to call for a pickup!"

She twirled around and then took on her goopy, legless form and saluted. "Tell Stormy 'goodbye' for me! We should really do this _again_ sometime. Ta Ta!" She then tapped the side of her helm, "WARP ME AWAY, STAR!" and in a flash of white light, she was gone.

The Autobots were all quiet for a moment, and then Ratchet shook his head. "Kids…" He muttered as he walked away, "She could have left us alone a long time ago…"

Optimus smirked, and then looked out the window. "Looks like the storm is starting to let up… Anyone want to go throw snowballs to pass the time?"

Bumblebee was up in an instant, "You read my mind, Boss Bot!"

"Wait for us!" Sari hollered as she and Bulkhead got up.

The three youngest members of the team dashed outside, and Prowl settled down for a nap in the rafters. Optimus was about to head outside as well when he saw Sentinel spoke his name.

"Optimus…"

The young prime paused, "Sentinel?"

"…Thanks." Was all Sentinel muttered, and then he retreated from the front room and back into the halls.

Optimus smiled a bit, wondering a bit just what exactly Sentinel was thanking him for. "You're welcome…" He whispered.

He hoped the two of them could move on from things now, that after all this time, the past could finally be buried, but even if it wasn't… Optimus was just glad that this time, things turned out for the better.

He headed outside to join his teammates in their play, and the front room was empty…Save for a pair of glowing blue eyes peering out of a reflection on a sheet of metal, a mischievous giggle echoing softly.

"Joyous…! Very entertaining, but just you _wait_ my little tin soldiers… There is much _more_ fun to be had…!"


End file.
